Polio: 15 councils at risk in Bauchi

Dr Nisser Umar, the Executive Secretary, Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (PHCDA) on Saturday said 15 out of the 20 Local Government Areas face the risk of polio infestation.

Umar said this at the flagging-off ceremony of the July 2012 Immunisation Plus Days (IPDs) at Firo community in Ganjuwa LGA on Saturday.

He said that this was why the campaign teams were increased from 836 to 2000 for effective campaigns.

The Executive Secretary said that in all, 200 local government areas were at the risk of being infected by the scourge in the country.

Umar called on parents to ensure that all children eligible for the exercise were restricted from moving so as to avoid missing them.

He said the state in collaboration with the LGAs had procured 1.900 million doses for the targeted number of children to be immunised.

“In the last one we did, we come to realised that some of the issues were as a result of the movement of the children from one place to the other as such the children missed out at that time.

“Some LGAs that provided 80 cartoons of the plus during the last IPDs, but with the collaboration of state and LGAs we have increased it to 686 cartoons,’’ he said.

In his address, the Executive Director, National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NHCDA), Dr Ado Mohammed, represented by Elder Lawrence Oden said that 38 monitors were deployed to the state.

He said that they have since being assigned to various areas in the state.

Flagging off the IPDs, Gov.IsaYuguda of Bauchi, represented by his deputy, Alhaji Aminu Saleh said that over 2. 2 million doses of oral polio vaccines were provided to the state by the NPHCDA for the exercise.

He said that training was earlier conducted for 325 focal persons and focal supervisors from LGA to wards levels.

The governor expressed his disappointment with community leaders and LGA administration over the new cases of wild polio viruses discovered in the state.

He said that the state would not hesitate to sanction any person wanting in the discharged of his duty.

The governor commended development partners for their support and called on parents to avail their children of the government gesture.